BowenCT Posted December 29, 2010 Report Posted December 29, 2010 Hi everyone, hope you all had a nice Christmas. I've been a member for a while, but have never owned a Banshee. I am considering buying one soon for ice riding. I have been looking around at used bikes (eBay, CL, local classifieds, etc.) and prices seem to be allllll over the place. Is there a price guide to use as a guideline? I don't mind paying good money, but I just don't want to take a deal if it's not the right one. I want to pay what is fair to me and fair to the seller. Secondly, what are a few big areas of concern that I should immediately look out for? Has anyone on here ever put together a 'check-list' for prospective buyers? Basically what I am looking for is a nice clean, fairly unmolested machine. I want something that will be reliable with regular maintanance and not require a lot of tinkering. Huge thanks in advance for any tips/advice/insight that any of you would be willing to share! Quote
dmfisher71 Posted December 29, 2010 Report Posted December 29, 2010 banshees are fun and fast but if you want something you dont have to tinker with everytime you ride you may want to look into a 4 stroke. love the banshees but they are sometimes a lot of work and can be a money pit. Quote
BowenCT Posted December 29, 2010 Author Report Posted December 29, 2010 banshees are fun and fast but if you want something you dont have to tinker with everytime you ride you may want to look into a 4 stroke. love the banshees but they are sometimes a lot of work and can be a money pit. I had a 4-stroke, 400EX, great bike but didn't really like it on the ice. The snappy powerband of the 'Shee and rev happy motor are sooo much fun on the ice! Quote
06specialedition Posted December 29, 2010 Report Posted December 29, 2010 banshees are fun and fast but if you want something you dont have to tinker with everytime you ride you may want to look into a 4 stroke. love the banshees but they are sometimes a lot of work and can be a money pit. Quote
muggzy Posted December 30, 2010 Report Posted December 30, 2010 (edited) banshees are fun and fast but if you want something you dont have to tinker with everytime you ride you may want to look into a 4 stroke. love the banshees but they are sometimes a lot of work and can be a money pit. Sounds like someone who doesn't know what their doing. A built banshee with everything pushed to the limits will of course require constant tinkering. A conservatively built banshee that is properly jetted and fed a quality fuel/synth oil mixture will be VERY reliable and pure fun. Look for a bike that is visibly clean and well maintained, with no more than bolt-on mods (pipes, reeds, air filter, airbox drilled, if cool heads with no less than 22cc domes...) No advance on the timing. Put it up on a milk crate under the frame/engine to get the wheels off the ground and check for play in the swing arm bearings, rear axle bearings, and front a-arm bushings. Get a $20-30 compression tester and look for compression in the +120 range and equal or nearly so on both cylinders (someone correct me if I'm wrong). Check the brakes and look for fluid leaks wherever anything goes in/out of the crankcase. Check the frame for signs of bending or welded repairs. For all of this it should run in the $2500 - $3500 range. Adjust for any problems and your comfort level in fixing them. Once you get it home you are going to want to either jet it yourself (or have a reliable shop do it) to make sure it's right for your conditions; elevation above sea level, air temp and existing mods. This is true for ANY two stroke anything. Treat it conservatively and set the jetting a hair on the rich side. Use fresh high octane pump fuel and a synthetic or semisynthetic two stroke oil only (I use Maxima Super M) mixed 32:1 - 4ozs/gal. The only tinkering you'll have to do is adjust the jets in the spring and fall for summer/winter conditions (main jet ~2 sizes larger in winter) and regular maintenance like cleaning the air filter and changing tranny oil. It's not too hard to do with some help from a Clymer's manual and the people on this forum. Keep it conservative and your banshee will last you forever with minimal tinkering. Edited December 30, 2010 by muggzy Quote
BowenCT Posted December 30, 2010 Author Report Posted December 30, 2010 muggzy, very helpful and informative post. Exactly what I was looking for, thank you. I have my eye on an '05 that I am hoping to go look at this week. Quote
muggzy Posted December 31, 2010 Report Posted December 31, 2010 muggzy, very helpful and informative post. Exactly what I was looking for, thank you. I have my eye on an '05 that I am hoping to go look at this week. Any time Bowen. '05 is pretty new, that'd be pretty sweet. Good Luck Quote
midlifecrisis Posted December 31, 2010 Report Posted December 31, 2010 The only thin I would really add to muggzys list is to stay away from a synthetic oil in the winter as they have a tendency to break down or seperate into their base components in the cold weather, I noticed you were in New York, and Im just on the other side of the lake. If youre looking on CL, stay away from bikes coming out of an ad in Weedsport, he thinks he can build a motor in 2 hours. Enjoy! Quote
muggzy Posted January 1, 2011 Report Posted January 1, 2011 (edited) The only thin I would really add to muggzys list is to stay away from a synthetic oil in the winter as they have a tendency to break down or seperate into their base components in the cold weather, I noticed you were in New York, and Im just on the other side of the lake. Hey Midlife, You probably have LOTS more cold weather riding experience than I do but this is the first I've ever heard of synthetics breaking down in cold weather. The Maxima Super M that I use is a synthetic blend and I've been using it for several years without trouble. The local shop I go to doesn't use anything else. Can you support this? I've never heard of it before and Klotz, a full synthetic that's very popular on this site, is highly recommended for snowmobiles. Edited January 1, 2011 by muggzy Quote
banshee#14 Posted January 1, 2011 Report Posted January 1, 2011 Hey Midlife, You probably have LOTS more cold weather riding experience than I do but this is the first I've ever heard of synthetics breaking down in cold weather. The Maxima Super M that I use is a synthetic blend and I've been using it for several years without trouble. The local shop I go to doesn't use anything else. Can you support this? I've never heard of it before and Klotz, a full synthetic that's very popular on this site, is highly recommended for snowmobiles. Nope, not all synthetic oils separate in cold weather just some of them, if they do sepersted in cold weather it should say on the rear label. Super M doesn't sepersted in cold weather that's why you've never had problems with it but castor927 does separate in the cold. and I think klotz doesn't sepersted in the cold either, not sure on that one tho! Quote
muggzy Posted January 1, 2011 Report Posted January 1, 2011 Nope, not all synthetic oils separate in cold weather just some of them, if they do sepersted in cold weather it should say on the rear label. Super M doesn't sepersted in cold weather that's why you've never had problems with it but castor927 does separate in the cold. and I think klotz doesn't sepersted in the cold either, not sure on that one tho! Thanks for that confirm banshee#14, I was getting a little nervous there. Quote
banshee#14 Posted January 1, 2011 Report Posted January 1, 2011 Thanks for that confirm banshee#14, I was getting a little nervous there. No problem muggzy. Quote
boise_banshee Posted January 1, 2011 Report Posted January 1, 2011 Why do you have a fire extinguisher on the back of your raptor?? Sorry for getting off topic, but I have the same one in my boat and I can even see what looks like the red safety pin you rip out to pull the trigger. I have seen that pic alot and thought that Funny Quote
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